Rao, D.P.
ROLE OF REMOTE SENSING AND GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM
IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
D.P.Rao
Director
National Remote Sensing Agency
(Department of Space, Govt. of India)
Balanagar, Hyderabad - 500 037
(INDIA)
E-mail: director@nrsa.gov.in
dprao@nrsa.gov.in
ABSTRACT
Over exploitation of available natural resources for meeting the growing demand
for food, fuel and fibre of an ever-increasing population has led to serious
environmental degradation. Globally, 1964.4x106 ha land are affected by humaninduced degradation. Of this, 1,903x106ha are subject to soil erosion by water,
548.3x106 ha to wind erosion, 239.1x106ha to chemical deterioration, 68.2x106ha
to compaction and 10.5 x 10!ha to waterlogging (UNEP, 1993). Furthermore,
rapid industrialization coupled with the deforestation has led to building up of
green house gases in thee atmosphere resulting in global warming. Thus, it is
obvious that the environmental degradation process unless detected early and
action taken to arrest or mitigate may lead to further deterioration and may
affect sustainable development efforts which is key concern in Agenda 21.
Sustainable development of natural resources refers to maintaining a fragile
balance between productivity functions and conservation practices through
identification and monitoring of problem areas and calls for optimal utilization of
available natural resources based on their potentials and limitations while
maintaining a good harmony with the environment.
Information on the nature, extent, spatial distribution along with the potentials
and limitations of natural resources is a pre-requisite to achieve the goals of
sustainable development. By virtue of providing synoptic view of fairly large area
at a regular interval spaceborne multispectral measurements hold great promise
in generating reliable, information on various natural resources, namely soils,
mineral, surface and ground water, forest cover, marine resources, in a timely
and cost-effective manner. Geographic Information System (GIS) offers an ideal
environment for integrating spatial and attribute data on natural resources and
environment, and for subsequent generation of optimal land use plan on a
micro-watershed basis. Furthermore, Global Positioning System (GPS) enables
making precise in situ measurements on various terrain parameters which are
used for both generating baseline as well as derivative information on natural
resources for various developmental activities.
Advancements in weather
forecasting and tele-communication further help in effective implementation of
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optimal land use plans/action plans. An attempt has been made in this article to
provide an overview of the magnitude of the land degradation problem, concepts
of sustainable development based on conservation of land and water resources
and to identify sustainability indicators and to illustrate the role of remote
sensing, GIS, GPS and digital photogrammetry. A few case studies are cited on
the success stories on sustainable development of land and water resources.
Furthermore, the article also identifies gap areas, and projects future scenario
vis-à-vis likely developments in sensor technology, data processing and
interpretation/analysis and integration.
1. INTRODUCTION
Due to ever increasing pressure of population on land, the per capita arable land
has been dwindling. In the year 1986, the worldwide cropped area was 1.5billion
ha which was supporting the total world population of about 5 billion. The per
capita arable land in 1986, thus works out to be 0.3 ha. With the increasing
population pressure it has been progressively declining. By the year 2000, the
per capita arable land area will decline to 0.23ha, and to 0.15ha by 2050 (Lal
and Pierce, 1991).?? The problem of low land-to-people ratio is further
compounded by land degradation by way of accelerated soil erosion by water
and wind, salinization and / alkalization, waterlogging, compaction ; mining and
depletion of organic matter. With only 55 per cent of the geographical area of
the world, the developing countries carry 75 per cent of the world population
which leads to over-exploitation of natural resources.
Globally, 1964.4x106 ha land are affected by human-induced degradation(UNEP,
1993). Of this, 1,903x106ha are subject to soil erosion by water, 548.3x106 ha to
wind erosion, 239.1x106ha to chemical deterioration, 68.2x106ha to compaction
and 10.5 x 10!ha to waterlogging In addition, an estimated 3,600 million ha of
global area comprising of hilly regions of the humid tropics of India , Manchurea,
Korea, south-west China and Africa are under shifting cultivation (Schlippe, 1956;
Conklin, 1957). In India alone, out of a 329 million ha geographical area, 150
million ha of land are affected by wind and water erosion (Anonymous, 1976).
Annually, an estimated 6000 million tonnes of soil in lost through soil erosion by
water (Das, 1985). Apart from this, shifting cultivation, waterlogging, and
salinization and / or alkalization have affected an estimated 4.36million ha,
6million ha and 7.16million ha of land respectively (Anonymous, 1976). Frequent
floods and drought further compound the problem. Degradation of by way of
deforestation for timber and fuel wood, shifting cultivation and occasionally
forest fire is a very serious environmental problem. Besides, another equally
important aspect of the sustainability of vegetation is the bio-diversity that need
to be preserved.
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Exploitation, mis-management and neglect can ruin the fragile natural resources
and become threat to human survival. Archaeological evidences, in fact, have
revealed that land degradation was responsible for extinction of the Harappan
civilization in Western India, Mesopotamia in Western Asia and the Mayan culture
in Central America (Olson, 1981). In India, the deterioration of erstwhile forest
ecosystem of Cherapunji, Meghalaya state of North-eastern India is an example
of the devastating effects of overexploitation of natural resources. Meeting food
and fibre demands in the next century will require higher productivity levels for
land now in production, the addition of new land not currently in production and
the restoration of degraded lands to reasonable of productivity (Pierce and Lal,
1991).
Water resources, both surface as well as ground water is very crucial for
sustaining flora and fauna. Over exploitation of ground water and wastage of
precipitation water as run-off are the major issues which are to be addressed in
the context of sustainable development. In addition, pollution of water by
mining waste, solid wastes and sewage need to be checked. Anthropogenic
activities along the coast may further deteriorate the delicate coastal ecosystem.
In the event of major climatic change, coastal areas are going to be affected
more. In addition, exploitation of marine resources especially off-shore oil
drilling and ocean water pollution due to effluents from industries, solid wastes
and oil-spilled over from ships may affect the ocean environment.
World soils contain about three times more reserves of organic carbon than
world vegetation -1500 billion versus 560billion metric tons, respectively (Parr et
al., 1989). Soil degradation contributes to an increase in atmospheric carbon
dioxide through rapid decomposition of organic matter. In addition, rapid
industrialization and deforestation have led to building up of greenhouse gases
in the atmosphere resulting in global warming. Carbon dioxide concentration
has increased from 280ppm during 1850 to 350ppm at present. Similarly, the
concentration of methane (CH4) has increased from 0.85ppm during 1850 to
1.7ppm at present. Furthermore,
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) with very long
residence time (over 100 years) and nitrous oxide (N2O) have further added to
environmental problem. The increase in the concentration of green house gases
has resulted in the average increase in the global mean temperature of 0.5K.
Even with the adoption of revised Montreal Protocol regulation, the global mean
temperature rise is likely to reach 3K which can result in the rise of sea level by
18-20cm, leading to recession of shoreline by 27-30m, change in rainfall pattern
particularly in the tropical regions, fall in food production by about 15.0 per cent
and 10.0per cent depletion of ozone (Rao, 1991). The process of this
degradation, unless detected early and action taken to arrest or mitigate may
lead to further environmental deterioration.
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2.0 SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
Sustainable development of natural resources refers to maintaining a fragile
balance between productivity functions and conservation practice through
identification and monitoring of problem areas, and calls for application of
alternate agriculture practices, crop rotation, use of bio-fertilizers, energy efficient farming methods and reclamation of unutilized and under-utilized lands.
Although the importance of the role of holistic and systemic approaches to
solutions for large scale and complex socio-economic problems has been
emphasized for many years, it does not appear to have been seriously advocated
or experimented for management of natural resources. The sustainable
development paradigm is built on the premise that neither of the two objectiveseconomic development and environmental protection - can be ignored and that
an acceptable balance must be achieved between the two (Haimes, 1992). The
World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED, 1987) defined
sustainable development as that which meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The
Food and Agriculture Organization (1989) defined it as 'sustainable development
is the management and conservation of natural resources base and the
orientation of technological and institutional changes in such a manner as to
ensure the attainment and continued satisfaction of human needs for present
and future generations. Such sustainable development conserves land, water,
plant and animal genetic resources, is environmentally non-degrading, technically
appropriate, economically viable and socially acceptable'.
Since the unsustainable patterns of production and consumption in the
industrialized society and developing countries have led to environmental
degradation, the Governments of the different countries made a commitment to
foster sustainable development at the Earth Summit of 1992 in Reo de Janeiro.
Agenda 21 of the summit addresses these issues in detail and identifies the
action items for sustainable development. One of the issues which is addressed
in the Agenda is the conservation and management of natural resources for
development. It could be achieved by planning and management of land
resources, combating deforestation and conservation of biodiversity, combating
desertification and drought, protection of the quality and supply of fresh water,
protection of the oceans and coastal areas, rational use and development of their
living resources, and protection of the atmosphere from pollution.
For sustainable development of natural resources Hurni (1997) has advocated an
approach viz. sustainable land management (SLM) and is of the view that the
natural resources can potentially be used in a sustainable way if appropriate land
management technology, regional planning and the policy framework
complement a purposeful way in accordance with the principles and concepts of
each other in SLM. Sustainable land management (SLM) has been defined as “a
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system of technologies and/planning that aims to integrate ecological with
socioeconomic and political principles in the management of land for agricultural
and other purposes to achieve intra- and intergenerational equity (Dumanski,
1994; Hurni, 1996). SLM is thus, comprises of three development components,
namely technology, policyt and land use planning. Following the sustainability
paradigm, ‘appropriate’ would require that a technology follow five pillars of
sustainability, namely be (i) ecologically protective (ii) socially acceptable (iii)
economically productive (iv) economically viable, and (v) reduce the risk.
3.0 SUSTAINABNILITY
Sustainability refers to qualitative and quantitative continuity in the use of a
resource. It implies a state of equilibrium between human activities as influenced
by social behavior, acquired knowledge and applied technology, on one hand,
and the food production on the other (Farshad and Zinck, 1993). Sustainability
could be defined in elementary terms by (Gallopin, 1996) :
"(Ot+1) #$" (Ot)
Where " is a value function of the outputs of the system. There are several
perspectives of sustainability, namely economic, ecological, social and an
optimum mix of ecological and economic perspective Sustainability attempts not
only to address global issues, such as resource degradation, deforestation and
ozone layer depletion, but also local issues, such as maintenance of eco- and
socio-eco-systems or a combination of these. Sustainability of natural resources
depends on their resilience and carrying capacity. Resilience refers to how easily
a soil can recover lost functions or restore the balance among functions
(Warkentin, 1995). Further, resilience of land when under stress due to
inadequate management is, in fact, central to sustainability. In agro-ecosystems
resilience has been defined as “The ability of a disturbed system to return after
new disturbance to a new equilibrium (Blum and Santelises, 1994). Central to the
concept of resilience in agricultural system is the soil architecture and its
recovery after damage. Carrying capacity refers to the maximum number of a
population that can continue to live at a pre-defined level of well-being and in a
limited area without causing irreversible changes in the environment, so that its
living conditions deteriorates and its growth declines (Farshad and Zinck, 1993).
There are several perspectives of sustainability, namely economic, ecological,
social and an optimum mix of ecological and economic perspective. From
ecological view point, sustainability may be defined as "an increasing trend in
production over time per unit consumption of the non-renewable or limiting
resources or per unit degradation of soil and environmental characteristic. The
dominantly economically oriented perspective puts more emphasis on economic
aspects. Natural resources are either disregarded or only marginally taken into
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account (Ikerd, 1990). The role of such factors of production as the availability
of natural resources and environmental services, but also that of environmental
impacts as products of economic activity are neglected. In the eco-friendly
economic development perspective, the ecological equilibrium is taken as norm
and the focus is mainly on building up a pattern and a rate of resource use which
the environment can sustain indefinitely (Wilkinson, 1973). Lastly, the social
perspective lays more emphasis on continued welfare of the society. The role of
economic - demographic interrelationship is either explicitly or implicitly referred
to.
4.0 SUSTAINABILITY INDICATORS
Quantification of sustainability is essential to objectively assess the impact of
management systems of actual and potential productivity, and environment.
However, sustainability is a concept and can not be measured directly.
Appropriate indicators must, therefore, be selected, tested, and validated to
determine levels and duration of sustainable land management. Sustainability
indicators are needed to monitor progress and to assess the effectiveness and
impact of policies on natural resources development. An ideal indicator should be
unbiased, sensitive to changes, predictive, referenced to threshold values, data
transformable, integrative and easy to collect and communicate (Liverman et
al.,1988). One such indicator is land quality indicator which includes nutrient
balance, yield trend and yield gaps, land use (agrodiversity) and land cover
(Dumanski,1997).
Sustainability can be assessed one or several indices. Although, general
principles may be the same, these indices must be fine-tuned and adapted under
local environments. Some of the indices of sustainability are as follows:
(i) Productivity (p) - Production per unit resource used can be assessed
by(Lal,1994).
P=p/R
Where P is productivity, p is total production, and R is resource used.
(ii) Total Factor of Productivity (TFP) - It is defined as productivity per unit cost
of all factors involved (Herdt,1993) and could be expressed as
TFP
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p
= -------------% n (Ri x Ci)
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Rao, D.P.
where p is total production, R is resources used, and C is cost of the resources
and n is the number of resources used in achieving total production.
(iii) Sustainability coefficient (Cs) which is dynamic and is problem or missionoriented is another indicator of sustainability. There are three basic systems,
natural human-made and interface. One such proposed coefficient for a humanmade system may be as follows( Lal,1991) .
Cs = f(Oi,Od, Om)t
where Oi =Output per that unit input that maximizes the per capita productivity
or profit
Od = Output per unit decline in the most limiting or non-renewable resource
Om = Minimum assured output
t = time
The exact nature of the function may be site-specific and will need input from
local empirical research data. For a natural system the sustainability coefficient
(Cs), mentioned above, could be modified to account for the role of human being
and could be written as (Rao and Chandrashekhar,1996).
Cs = f (Oi,Od,Om,HDI)t
where HDI=Human Development Index.
Further, in case of a interface system also the HDI becomes very important
modulating factor for deriving sustainability indices. Conceptually, it can be
formulated as (Rao and Chandrashekhar,1996).
Cs = f (Oi,Od,Om)t. HDI
[Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite index of achievements in basic
human capabilities in three fundamental dimensions - a long and healthy life;
knowledge and decent standard of living (UNDP,1996). Three variables have
been chosen to represent these three dimensions - life expectancy, educational
attainment and income. The longevity is measured by life expectancy at birth,
educational attainment is measured by a combination of adult literacy (two-third
weights) and combined primary, secondary and tertiary enrolment ratios (onethird weight); and weight of living as measured by real GDP per capita (PPP$).
For computation of index fixed minimum and maximum values have been
established for each of these indicators.
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Life expectancy at birth
Adult litracy
Combined enrolment ratio
Real GDP per capita (PPP$)
:
:
:
:
25 years and 85 years
0 per cent and 100 per cent.
0 per cent and 100 per cent
PPP$ 100 and PPP$ 40,000
For any component of the HDI, individual indices can be computed using the
following formula:
Actual xi value - minimum xi value
Index =
----------------------------------------------Maximum xi value - minimum xi value
The HDI is a simple average of life expectancy index, educational attainment
index and the adjusted real GDP per capita (PPP$) index. It is calculated by
dividing the sum of these three indices by three.]
For human-made system dominated by agricultural farming, the model
conceptualizes a positive feed back mechanism between Q1 and Q2 which could
be expressed in a simple form as (Rao et al.,1995).
Q1-Q2 > 0 Unsustainable development
Q1- Q2 = 0 Sustainable development
Q1- Q2 < 0 Virgin eco-systems (Protected bio-reserves)
Where Q1 = Production in energy units and includes the emission of CO2,
transport of moisture through evapo-transpiration and transport of nutrients
Q2 = Consumption in terms of energy units CO2, H2O and nutrients from the
atmosphere or external sources.
A fragile balance between production processes (Q1 energy units) and
consumption practices (Q2 energy units) ensures compatibility between
supportive and assimilative capacity of a region.
5.0 ACHIEVING SUSTAINABILITY
Over exploitation of natural resources, as pointed out earlier, has led to land
degradation of varying degrees. In order to achieve sustainability of our natural
resources, efforts need to made to prevent further deterioration of degraded
lands, therefore, to employ appropriate soil and water conservation measures to
arrest soil loss and conserve soil moisture for vegetation growth, to restore and
improve soil fertility, followed by adoption of suitable soil and water management
practices to maintain soil fertility in the long run.
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For preventing soil degradation alley cropping – raising fast growing trees
between broad beds of field crops to develop conditions similar to the recycling
system of the original forest ecosystem need to be practiced. Arresting soil loss
from severely eroded lands under cultivation, on the other hand, could be
achieved by switching over to fallowing for at least 10 years period from existing
annually tilled crops. Such a practice allows regeneration of the resource base.
In developing countries, the major constraints ton achieve sustainability include
lack of required agricultural inputs owing to poor economic conditions,
fragmentation of holdings, population pressure preventing long fallowing (10
years or more) of cultivated marginal lands undergoing degradation.
Managing the non-crop period especially before onset of monsoon where soil
erosion is very severe, is a key to sustainable development. Such a practice aims
at minimizing undesirable material flows from agro-ecosystems. The noncrop
period is to be used to increase the diversity and complexity of agroecosystems .
Cover crops could be seeded during the life cycle of existing crop to serve
ecologically important functions including erosion control, suppression of pests,
alteration of pest cycle, and fixation and bio-cycling of nutrients.
There are, however, several constraints, namely agroecologic, agronomic,
technologic, social, economic, institutional and political on achieving sustainable
development. Constraints occur mostly at two levels i.e. the farm level, where
application takes place, and the policy-making level, where many of the
application conditions are set in. At the farm level for example, sustainability is
controlled not only by the limited resources of the production unit but also by
national and international policies (e.g. the General Agreement on Tariff and
Trade). Policy making, in turn, is conditioned by global programmes (e.g. Agenda
21 and birth control programmes).
6. INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT
Hitherto, the natural resources, namely minerals, groundwater, soils, vegetation/
forest cover and surface water have been assessed and treated individually for
their optimal utilization. Since most of these resources are interdependent and
co-exist in nature, they need to be considered collectively for their optimal
utilization. This fact has led to the development of the concept of integrated
assessment of natural resources. Integrated assessment can be defined as an
interdisciplinary and participatory
process of combining, interpreting and
communicating knowledge from diverse scientific disciplines to allow a better
understanding of complex phenomena. The aim is to describe the entire causeeffect chain of a problem so that it can be evaluated from a synoptic perspective.
Integrated assessment has two characteristics: (i) it should provide added value
compared to single disciplinary assessment; and (ii) it should offer decisionmakers useful information (Rotmans and Dowlatabadi ,1996).
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Attempts have been made in India, for the first time, to integrate the
information on various natural resources, namely soils, ground water, surface
water, land use/land cover and forest cover derived from remote sensing data,
with the socio-economic and other ancillary data in a GIS environment to
generate locale-specific action plan on a watershed basis for sustainable
development under a unique remote sensing application project, 'Integrated
Mission for Sustainable Development (IMSD)' covering about 84.00million ha
and spread over in 175 districts. The project aims at generating thematic maps
on various natural resources like soils, groundwater, surface water, land use /
land cover / forest cover at 1:50,000 scale from the Indian Remote Sensing
Satellite (IRS-1) Linear Imaging Self-scanning Sensor (LISS-II) data and
integrating them in a GIS environment to generate locale-specific action plan on
a watershed basis for sustainable development. The locale -specific action plan
recommended under this project is based on certain assumptions. In case
these assumptions do not hold good due to unforeseen changes in the climatic
conditions, lack of expected cooperation from the people, the anticipated results
may not be achieved.
7.0 ROLE OF REMOTE SENSING AND GIS
As mentioned earlier, information on the nature, extent, spatial distribution, and
potential and limitations of natural resources is a pre-requisite for planning the
strategy for sustainable development.
In addition, socio-economic and
meteorological, and other related ancillary information is also required while
recommending locale-specific prescriptions for taking up curative or preventive
measures. By virtue of providing synoptic view of a fairly large area at a regular
interval, spaceborne multispectral data have been used at operational level for
generating base line information on mineral resources, soils, ground water and
surface water, land use/land cover, forests, etc. at scales ranging from regional
to micro level i.e. 1:250,000 to 1:12,500 scale and monitoring the changes, if
any, over a period of time. Beginning with the Landsat-MSS data with a 60X80m
spatial resolution and four spectral bands spanning from green to near infrared
in early seventies, the natural resources scientists had access to Landsat-TM data
with a 30m spatial resolution and seven spectral bands spread over between
blue and thermal infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum in early
eighties which helped further refinement and generation of thematic information
at a larger scale. Further, high spatial resolution HRV-MLA and PLA data with
20m and 10m spatial resolution, respectively from SPOT series of satellite in later
half of eighties have supplemented the effort of generating information on
natural resources.
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The indigenous effort on design and development of satellites and sensors led
initially to the launch of Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS-1A and B), carrying
Linear Imaging Self-scanning Sensors (LISS-I and II) with the spatial resolution
comparable with those of Landsat MSS and TM, respectively in late eighties and
early nineties. Further development in the sensor technology had resulted in the
launch of the state-of-the-art satellite (IRS-IC) in December, 1995 with an
unique combination of the following three sensors:
Wide Field sensor (WiFS) with 188m spatial, two spectral bands - red and near
infrared, 810km swath and a repetivity of 5 days.
Linear Imaging Self-scanning Sensor (LISS-III) with 23.5m spatial resolution in
the green red and near infrared region, and 70.5 m in the middle infrared region,
and 140 km swath,
Panchromatic (PAN) camera with 5.8m spatial resolution, 70km swath and stereo
capability.
While WiFS with 5-day repetivity and large swath provides a regional level
monitoring of crop condition assessment, LISS-III multispectral sensor with 140
km. swath provides detailed level crop acreage estimation and crop condition
assessment. PAN data with 5.8m spatial resolution and stereo capability enables
appreciation of terrain's relief. Merging LISS-III data with PAN offers additional
advantage of exploiting both spectral information from LISS-III and high spatial
resolution from PAN for such applications as geomorphological mapping, soil
resources mapping and terrain analyses. The uniqueness of these sensors lies
in the fact that all the sensors with regional and local level coverage are
mounted on the same platform and collect data under similar illumination
conditions thereby avoiding the need for radiometric normalization. The IRS-1D
with the similar payload as of IRS-1C was launched in March,1997 as a back-up
of latter.
Further, the development of launch vehicles especially Polar Satellite Launch
Vehicle (PSLV) has enabled India, launching three experimental satellites, namely
IRS-1E in September, 1993, IRS-P2 in October 1994 and IRS-P3 in March, 1996.
The IRS-P3 has two payloads namely Wide Field Sensors (WiFS) same as the one
aboard IRS-1C/1D, and Modular Electro-optical Scanner (MOS) with 13 channels
spanning from blue to middle infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum.
For visual interpretation, the standard false colour composite (FCC) prints
generated from green, red and near infra-red bands have been used. However,
special products with varying combination of spectral bands have also been tried
out for certain specific applications. For instance, red, near infrared and
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shortwave infrared combination has been found to help improved delineation of
lithological boundaries - an important element in soil resources mapping.
Apart from supervised classification of digital multispectral data, new
classification algorithms like fuzzy logic, artificial neural network, etc have been
developed which help refining the information generated on natural resources
using Gaussiun maximum likelihood per-pixel classifier. Further, using advanced
image fusion techniques like Intensity, Hue and Saturation (IHS) transformation,
further refinement in the information on natural resources could be made.
Similarly, for monitoring changes that have taken place either due to
developmental programmes or land degradation, image differencing and
principal component analysis provide more objective assessment of such
changes.
Hitherto, only optical sensor data with a few broad spectral bands have been
used to generate base line information on natural resources. The hyperspectral
remote sensing with a potential to provide diagnostic capability of some natural
features like minerals, vegetation, etc will help refining the information
generated on natural resources.
Imaging the terrain in the presence of smoke, haze and cloud cover has been
the major limitation of the optical sensor data. Microwave data with day-andnight observation; and cloud/haze/smoke penetration capability hold very good
promise for generating information on crop coverage, floods, etc. during
monsoon season. The polarimetric images generated from microwave energy
with different polarization provide further insight into structure and flouristics of
vegetation, soil properties and parent material (Skidmore et al.,1997). Further,
radar interferometry is yet another tool that enables generating DEM which
allows monitoring glaciers, volcanic eruption, mine subsidence, mudslips, etc.
Integration of information on natural resources, socio-economic and climatic
conditions and other related ancillary information in a holistic manner for
prescribing locale-specific intervention for a given area is very crucial.
Geographic Information System (GIS) offers the capability of integrating such
spatial and attribute
data and subsequent generation of action
plan/developmental plan for sustainable development. The GIS has been used in
a variety of applications, namely database development and changes in the
aquatic environment (Remilard and Welch, 1993), modeling of non- point source
pollution (Welch et al, 1993), database design for a multiscale spatial
information system (Jones et al.1996), assessment of surface and zonal
models of population (Martin,1996), military
housing management
(Forgionne
et
al. 1996),
multiple
criteria
group decision
making
(Malczewski,1996),etc. Further, remote sensing and GIS have been used
conjunctively in several studies for addressing issues related to developmental
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planning(Trotter,1991; Smith and Blackwell,1980; Welsh et al.,1992; Hellden et
al.,1982).
8.0 INDIAN EXPERIENCE
Having realised the importance of integrated approach for sustainable
development, the Department of Space, Government of India in collaboration
with the State Governments had initiated pilot studies in 21 districts covering
203,000 sq. km. and representing diverse terrain, agro-climatic conditions and
social and cultural practices apart from very often affected by drought, in the
year 1987, to find scientific and lasting solution to mitigate drought following the
unprecedented drought in many parts of the country during the period 1985-87.
Based on encouraging results of the pilot projects, such study was extended to
another 153 districts covering 549,496 sq. km. spread over in 25 states at the
instance of Planning Commission, Govt. of India - the highest policy decision
making body, under a national project titled "Integrated Mission for Sustainable
Development (IMSD)". A conceptual framework of IMSD is given in Fig.-1. For
ease of implementation of the action plan in phased manner in these selected
districts, initially it was decided to identify a priority block in each district for the
study. (A block is an administrative unit covering an area ranging from 10001500 sq. Km.). Subsequently, 80 blocks spread over in 80 districts and covering
85,339 sq. km. have been selected on a priority basis for taking up such study.
8.1 DATABASE
For generating information on land and water resources, the Linear Imaging Selfscanning (LISS-II) data from Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS-1A/1B) in the
form of False Colour Composite (FCC) prints at 1:50,000 scale and digital data in
the form of Computer Compatible Tape (CCT) were used in conjunction with
the ancillary information, namely published reports, thematic maps, etc. and
adequate field check. Information on slope has been derived from 1:50,000
scale Survey of India topographical maps. For appreciation of climate of the
area, meteorological data available with the India Meteorological
Department/respective district or taluk (an administrative unit) headquarters
were made use of. Besides, information on demographic and socio-economic
conditions were
taken from the published records by the concerned
departments.
8.2 APPROACH
A holistic approach involving generation of thematic maps on land and water
resources and their integration with the socio-economic and other ancillary
information was employed to arrive at locale-specific prescription for sustainable
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development land and water resources. Various steps involved are described
hereunder :
8.2.1 Generation of Thematic Maps
To begin with, the watershed boundaries were taken from the published
Watershed Atlas (All India Soil and Land Use Survey,1990). Further divisions
within each watershed in terms of sub-watershed, mini- watershed, and microwatershed were made following the guidelines laid down by the All India Soil and
Land Use Survey (1991). Thematic maps on hydrogeomorphological condition,
soil resources and present land use/land cover have been generated through
systematic visual interpretation and/digital analysis of IRS-IA/B LISS-II
multispectral data with 36.25m resolution in conjunction with the collateral
information supported by adequate ground truth. The information, thus derived,
on lithology of the area and geomorphic features therein was used to infer
ground water potential of each lithological unit based on geomorphic features
and recharge conditions. Soil resources map of the area was prepared by
delineating sub-divisions within each geo-morphic units based on erosion status,
land use/land cover and image elements, namely colour, texture, shape, pattern,
association, etc. Soil composition of each geomorphic unit was defined by
studying the typical soil profiles in the field and classifying them upto series level
according to Soil Taxonomy (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1998) based on
morphological characteristics and chemical analyses data. In addition, derivative
maps, namely land capability and land irrigability were generated from the
information on soils and terrain conditions based on criteria laid down by All
India Soil and Land Use Survey (1970). Besides, land use/land cover maps were
prepared using monsoon (kharif) and winter (rabi) crop growing seasons and
summer period satellite data, and single-cropped and double-cropped areas
apart from other land use/land cover categories were delineated. Furthermore,
micro watersheds and water bodies were delineated and the drainage network
have also been mapped.
Slope maps showing various slope categories were prepared based on contour
information (20m contour interval) available at 1:50,000 scale Survey of India
topographical maps. Road network and the location and extent of settlements
were also taken from topographical sheets. Demographic and socio-economic
data were analysed to generate information on population density, tribal
population, literacy status, economic backwardness and the availability of basic
amenities.
8.2.2 Generation of Action Plan
Generation of action plan involves a careful study of thematic maps on land and
water resources both individually as well as in combination to identify various
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land and water resources regions termed as Composite Land Development Units
(CLDU), and their spatial distribution, potential and limitations for sustained
agriculture and other uses; and development of an integration key. The first
step was accomplished by superimposing individual thematic map over each
other manually and identifying CLDUs. This could also be done by digitizing/
scanning all the thematic maps and studying them subsequently in a GIS
environment. Each CLDU was then studied carefully with respect to potentials /
limitations of
various natural resources and socio-economic and climatic
conditions and a specific land use and/soil and water conservation practice are
suggested. Subsequently, taking landform as a base an integration key in terms
of potential/limitations of soils, present land use/land cover, and ground water
potential; and suggested alternate land use/action plan was developed.
8.2.3 Implementation of Action Plan
The action plan and/alternate land use practices emerging from aforesaid
approach are implemented in part of the watershed by the implementing
agencies in the district depending on availability of funds. The state-of-the-art
technology available for each action item i.e. activity to develop land and water
resources of an area, is used in order to fully exploit the contemporary research
and developments in the field of agriculture, science and technology. While
implementing the action plan, the aspiration of the local people obtained through
a process called Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) is given utmost importance.
Initially, a micro watershed of 500 – 1,000ha is identified by the district/block
authorities based on developmental priority and the operational aspects of each
activity under action plan is studied carefully. Since most of the land except for
common land/government land, belongs to cultivators/individuals, for
implementation of action plan information on each land holding which is available
in cadastral maps (large scale village maps) is required. For this purpose,
cadastral map boundaries were digitized/scanned and overlaid onto satellite
data. The individual field where a specific action plan is recommended could be
identified by superimposing action plan map over digitized/scanned cadastral
maps. The progress of the implementation is monitored by an expert committee
constituted by the state government for each state/district.
8.3 IMPACT ASSESSMENT
After implementation of suggested action plan for land and water resources
development, the area undergoes transformation which could be monitored
regularly using satellite data and in situ observations. Such an exercise not only
helps studying the impact of the programme but also enables resorting to
midcourse correction, if required.
Parameters included under monitoring
activities are land use/land cover, extent of irrigated area, vegetation density and
condition; fluctuation of ground water table, well density and yield, cropping
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pattern and crop yield, occurrence of hazards and socio-economic conditions.
Included under land use/land cover parameters are: changes in the number and
areal extent of surface water bodies, spatial extent of forest and other
plantations, wastelands and cropped area. The vegetation density and vigor
have been assessed using vegetation index (VI) generated from IRS -1A/-1B
LISS-II or IRS-1C/-1D LISS-III data.
9. A CASE STUDY
In order to demonstrate the approach, an example of such an approach used in
a watershed in the semi-arid region of southern India is presented here. The
Pitlam watershed was selected for the study owing to its low (897mm) and
erratic rainfall, recurring drought, land degradation, poor irrigation facility and
poor literacy). Covering an area of 17,218ha, the test site lies between 18010’ to
18017’ N and 77035’ to 77045’ E and forms parts of Pitlam block (an
administrative unit) of Nizamabad district of Andhra Pradesh, Nanded district of
Maharastra. Lithologically, the are comprises of granite-gneissic complex and
basalt. Most of the area comprises of denudation slope and lower plateau which
is interspersed with burried pediplain, mesa inselberg and pediment. The area is
drained by the river Nallavagu and its tributaries.
9.1 Land and Water Resources
For generating information on land and water resources IRS-1B LISS-II data in
the form of False Colour Composite (FCC) prints at 1:50,000 scale acquired
during October, 1992, and February and May, 1993 was were used following the
approach described in the Section 8.2. Denudation slope, plateau, pediplain,
buried pediplain-shallow and medium, pediment, mesa and inselberg , as
mentioned earlier, comprise the geomorphic units (Fig.- 2). While inselberg,
mesa, pediments favour more run-off, the buried pediplain and plateau with
considerable thickness of weathered material are favourable for groundwater
development. Denudation slopes, inselbergs and mesas have, however, poor to
nil ground water potential. Coarse loamy Lithic Ustorthents and Loamy-skeletal
Typic Ustochrepts; Fine Vertic Ustochrepts and Fine loamy Typic Ustochrepts,
and Fine Udertic Ustochrepts and Fine loamy Udic Ustochrepts comprise the
major soil categories of the watershed (Fig.-3). Owing to rugged and slopy
nature terrain, shallow and gravelly soils, fairly large area of the watershed is
not supporting crops.The kharif is the major crop and covers an estimated
7,289ha comprising 42.33% of the watershed (Fig.-4). The rabi crop is,
however, taken wherever assured irrigation through ground water /tank is
available and covers1049ha(Fig.-4). The area under double crop is only 308ha or
1.79% of the total area. Further, an equally large area (8,250ha) comprising
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48.38% of the watershed is essentially lying barren except for some scrubs at
places.
9.2 Collateral Information
The collateral information includes the information on slope, aspect, altitude and
socio-economic conditions. As mentioned earlier, the information on slope was
generated from topographical sheets by taking 20m contour interval as a base.
Most of the area except for mesa, inselberg and pediment is very gently to
gently sloping whereas a few pockets of nearly level lands occur in the buried
pediplain (Fig.-5).
9.3 Action Plan
The information on land and water resources of the watershed, thus generated,
enables the policy makers and administrators having an overview of the
potentials and limitations of the natural resources of entire watershed and
eventually helps identifying potential and critical areas requiring detailed
investigation. Based on information on land and water resources, terrain
attributes like slope, aspect, altitude, quantum and distribution of rainfall, an
integration key was developed after scanning the spatial data on land and water
resources on a CONTEX FSS 800 black and white and white scanner, and
studying them in a GIS environment using ARC/INFO software, along with
collateral information, for generation of optimal land use plan for sustainable
development of the watershed.
For optimal utilization of available land and water
resources, intensive
agriculture has been recommended in the buried pediplain with fine–textured
moderately deep to deep soils with good to moderate ground water potential.
Whereas fuelwood and fodder plantation has been recommended in 3,198ha of
land comprising 18.57% of the watershed for providing protective cover to
denudational slope with coarse-textured, shallow and gravelly soils; agroforestry/rain-fed agro-horticulture/horticulture has been proposed in 9,299ha of
land covering28.38% of the test site following soil conservation measures in the
lower plateau with moderately deep to deep black soils (Fig.-6).
Soil erosion by water is one of the major problems. In order to arrest soil loss
and run-off check dams with suitable soil conservation measures like vegetative
bunding, construction of check walls across gullies have been advocated (Fig.-7).
Such check dams not only help arresting soil loss but contribute significantly to
groundwater recharge. In addition, the construction of percolation tanks has also
been recommended at suitable locations which are exclusively meant for
groundwater recharge.
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10. CONCLUSIONS
Sustainable development aims at maintaining the balance between often
conflicting ideals of economic growth and nurturing environmental quality and
viability. Remote sensing provides a sound data base for generating baseline
information on natural resources, a pre-requisite for planning and
implementation , and monitoring of any developmental programme. GIS offers
an ideal environment for integration of spatial and attribute data on natural
resources for formulating the developmental plan of an area taking into account
social, cultural and economic needs of the people. The digital elevation
model(DEM) generated from the measurements made by Global Positioning
System(GIS) through digital photogrammetric approach enable further refining
the developmental plans.Creation of digital database on natural resources for
Indian sub-continent under a national project titled “National(Natural) Resources
Information System(NRIS)” is, in fact, a major step forward in this direction. The
developmental plans, thus formulated, could be implemented through
participatory Rural Appraisal(PRA) programme.
Despite tremendous development in sensor technology, data processing and
analysis/interpretation techniques, certain specific inputs such as, development
of GIS-based land evaluation models for land capability, land irrigability,
suitability of land for a specific usage, development of cadastral - level action
plan, risk analysis in the event of certain assumptions are not satisfied, objective
impact assessment using space technology, development of ecological models to
project future developmental scenario, etc. could not be addressed.
Hyperspectral data from MODIS aboard EOS mission, high spatial resolution data
from recently launched IKONOS-II and future earth observation missions, namely
Cartosat-1, Resourcesat, Cartosat-2, Quickbird, Eyeglass, EROS-A and B, and
Orbview, etc. may enable generating cadastral-level optimal land use plan or
action plan for sustainable development of land and water resources. Such a
database would also enable objective monitoring of the developments resulting
from implementation of the action plan.
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